DraftKings and FanDuel Parent Foul Out As March Madness Bettors Beat the House
Lady Luck favored the gamblers this March Madness, leaving sportsbooks counting their losses instead of their chips. On Thursday, DraftKingsDKNG reported first-quarter revenue of $1.41B (up 20% year-over-year) but revealed that “customer-friendly sports outcomes” during college basketball’s biggest tournament prevented it from raising its annual forecast. CEO Jason Robins lamented that predictable tournament results left the house on the losing end of many wagers.
- DraftKings’ monthly unique payers rose 28% to 4.3M, but average revenue per user slipped 5%, partly due to its lottery app, Jackpocket, whose users spend less than traditional sportsbook bettors.
- Despite a “favorable” Super Bowl, the March Madness blow “more than offset” those gains, forcing DraftKings to hold steady on its 2025 revenue and adjusted EBITDA guidance.
Drowning in the same boat: DraftKings wasn’t alone in its March Madness misfortune. FanDuel parent Flutter EntertainmentFLUT also reported disappointing results, with Q1 sales up just 7.9% to $3.67B, falling short of analyst projections. CEO Peter Jackson blamed the slump on March Madness, noting “a huge number of the favorites won.” Unlike typical tournaments where unpredictable upsets balance out betting outcomes, this year’s predictable results gave savvy bettors the upper hand — proving that sometimes the house doesn’t always win, especially when brackets don’t bust.